Epistles of St. Bernard and a Copy of the Zbraslav Madonna

St. Bernard was the most important figure of the Cistercian order. He became one of the great promoters of the renewal of monastic life at the beginning of the second millennium. He shaped the order with the ideal of life devoted to prayer, work, and contemplation. The order was deeply influenced by his ascetic demands as well as his aesthetic sensibility. St. Bernard also became a proclaimer of the Second Crusade and influenced papal policy because one of his disciples ascended to the papal throne. An incredible number of his writings, letters, sermons, and other documents have survived to this day.

The exhibited 12th-century codex contains several diverse texts — the Treatise of Saint Adamnan On Holy Places; the History of the First Crusade called the "Jerusalem Crusade" by St. Remigius, written by the monk Robert; Miracles performed in India, or On the Arrival of John, Patriarch of the Indians; and various letters (epistles). The last part of the codex contains the letters of St. Bernard.

The epistles were loaned by the National Heritage Institute.

Alongside the epistles, a copy of the painting of the Zbraslav Madonna was placed in the display case. The Zbraslav monastery was also Cistercian.